Chapter 9 Chapter 9
“I hope to see you again soon, Valerie,” he replied, his eyes reflecting the city's beautiful lights.
Valerie was mesmerized by them and couldn’t take her gaze away. Her heart beat faster when he leaned towards her until their faces were only centimeters apart.
When their lips touched, Valerie fell into a trance, her senses focusing only on the man in front of her. The kiss left her breathless and disappointed when it ended too soon. Reluctantly, she forced herself to say goodbye to him and left to go home.
When she walked through the front door and closed it behind her, she leaned against it, about to collapse. She was exhausted, and it was all the stupid demon’s fault. She never dealt well with sleep deprivation; it never failed to bring her to her knees.
Hearing someone’s footsteps, she raised her head and spotted Maxwell with his hands in his pockets. His white braid rested on his shoulders as usual, and he still wore that weird silver chain over his nose. He studied her, eyes moving from her legs up to her face. His brow creased, and a cautious look appeared in his eyes.
“What’s wrong with you?” he commented.
She laughed without humor. “Don’t ask. If you hadn’t woken me so early, I would be overflowing with energy,” she hissed.
He tilted his head and glanced at her as if attempting to read her thoughts. “Strange,” he mumbled, gazing at the shadows under her eyes.
“Stupid demon,” she growled as she walked past him, entering her bedroom to go straight to bed.
—
She felt much better the following day, mostly because she slept for ten hours without interruptions. Maxwell didn’t wake her this time—a fact that she found rather surprising. He hadn’t cared yesterday; why did he care now?
Shrugging to herself, she decided not to overthink the demon’s weird behavior and trudged to the bathroom to shower. When she was done, she put her long black hair up in a ponytail, left the bathroom, and walked into the kitchen.
Unable to hold in a yawn, she hid her mouth behind her hand. Maxwell already awaited her, and he had a surprise in store. He didn’t wear his usual clothes, but a much more casual-looking outfit, no different than what humans would wear. A simple pair of jeans and a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up.
The chain on his face was gone. He crossed his arms and watched her like a hawk while she prepared breakfast. Valerie ignored his heavy stare, but it was hard since his blue eyes never failed to unnerve her.
“I’ll accompany you today,” he said with a finality that made clear he wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“What do you mean? You can’t just tag along; that’ll just keep me away from work,” Valerie said, inwardly fearing for the lives of all the humans they would come across.
“Am I that much of a distraction to you?” he smirked seductively, biting his lower lip in a way that made Valerie blush.
“What the—no. Don’t get too full of yourself, demon,” she complained, finishing her breakfast so that she could leave.
At the very last possible moment, she remembered to cover up the mark on her wrist—it was shining brightly. She took a band-aid and put it on top of it, hiding it from view. A faint light around the edges was still visible, but it would have to do for now. She didn’t want to be late.
They took the car, Valerie being more than just a little annoyed that he was so keen on tailing her all day. She could have lived without him. In more than one way. “Seriously, what is it with you? I don’t need you to follow me around.”
“I don’t need you either, but if you die, I’m fucked,” he shot back, leaning his head against the window as the car rolled through traffic. Her workplace was located in a large building in the city center. She shared the office with other journalists and editors who worked for the same agency.
“You'd better behave once we arrive, demon. Don’t make a scene,” she hissed.
“I don’t know, if I’m bored, I might. You’ll need to work hard to entertain me, little human,” he drawled.
Grumbling something under her breath, she parked the car in her usual spot and walked into the building with her unwanted companion, who followed her like a shadow.
They entered the lift, and Valerie pressed one of the illuminated buttons. The doors closed, and the lift moved up, but suddenly the lights inside went out—they were shrouded in utter darkness.
Valerie almost had a heart attack, the thought of getting stuck inside a lift scaring her to the core. However, she soon realized that the lift was still moving and instantly knew who was responsible for the lack of light.
“Fuck you,” she whispered. Maxwell chuckled in response to her annoyance, and the lamps began flickering like a strobe light. It irked her, and judging by the smirk on his lips, he was fully aware of it.
When the lift finally reached the tenth floor and the doors opened, he stopped his magic trick. Valerie wasn’t eager to find out what else he was capable of…
They headed down a hallway surrounded by glass panes, allowing them to see the other journalists sitting in their cubicles, typing away on their computers.
Valerie knocked at the door of the chief editor’s office at the end of the hallway. As soon as she heard a voice telling her to enter, she opened the door, and Maxwell followed her again, much to her chagrin.
“Good morning, Thorne.” Valerie gave a crooked smile, waving at him. “I brought a… uh… friend. I hope you don’t mind.”
Thorne looked up from his computer. His eyes fell on Valerie first before they moved to Maxwell and widened considerably.
“Maxwell? Is that really you?” he sputtered in surprise, causing Valerie’s mouth to open in shock.
“What? You know each other?” Valerie stammered, glancing at Maxwell, who smirked at Thorne, crossing his arms in front of his chest. If Maxwell was stunned to see him, he hid it very well.
“What a surprise to meet you, Nicholas Clarke. How many years has it been? 50?”
Valerie choked on air, staring at her boss. Nicholas Clarke? Was Thorne a demon, too? This gentle and kind man, with whom she had worked for years? It felt like someone had pulled the rug out from under her feet. She swallowed and stiffened.